We rounded up some of the most creative shrimp recipes, like these honey tamarind prawns!

It was all about pointing out the creative, the dedicated and the unlikely stories this week. On the Food Republic Today podcast, we spoke to Kate Williams of Detroit’s Lady of the House (a semi-finalist of this year’s James Beard Awards) about why people should be taking a chance on the city. We celebrated that José Andrés was recognized in a big way for his charity work in feed millions in Puerto Rico, Houston and California after several natural disasters. We also took a look at all the food moment happening at the Olympics. There was also some David Lynch talk in our podcast chat with Alex Stupak and Lynchian influences displayed at a Bushwick bar. All that and more on this week’s Hot Topics.

Closing a restaurant is never easy. A New York restaurateur tells us 10 lessons he learned from closing his first.